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Broadcast TV Ratings for Sunday, December 16, 2007 December 17, 2007 7:22 pm

Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Broadcast TV Ratings, News, Nielsen TV Ratings, Television.
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The season finale of Survivor: China finishes on a high note, as the program posts strong cycle to cycle gains from last May’s Survivor: Fiji. It was down though compared to last year’s Cook Islands cycle. Regardless, the program, and the reunion special afterwards, provided CBS with a strong household and viewers win for the evening.

Fox took the A18-49 crown thanks to an NFL Overrun and new (and repeat) episodes of their animated comedy lineup.

My full analysis of the nights programs follows after the jump.

CBS finished in first place for the evening with a 8.2/13 household rating/share and 13.95 million viewers, but was second among adults 18-49 with a 4.3/11 rating/share.

  • Last Week
    • 8.9/14 HH Rating/Share [#1]
    • 13.93M Viewers [#1]
    • 4.1/10 A18-49 Rating [#1]
  • 7:00 p.m.: 60 Minutes (8.7/14 HH rating/share, 13.26M viewers, 2.6/7 A18-49 rating/share) kicked off CBS’s first place evening with a solid non-Football lead-in performance (the week-to-week drops are explained by the absence of that very, very strong lead-in). The news magazine drew the hours largest audience among both households and viewers for non-Sports related programming, but lost out just slightly among adults 18-49 to ABC’s America’s Funniest Home Videos. Though it skews older, there’s no denying that 60 Minutes still has a devoted audience.
    • Week-to-week numbers (7:25 p.m.):
      • Households – 10.6/17 to 8.7/14
      • Viewers – 16.50M to 13.26M
      • Adults 18-49 – 4.2/11 to 2.6/7
    • Last week’s numbers (NFL Overrun):
      • Households – 18.4/32
      • Viewers – 30.26M
      • Adults 18-49 – 11.2/34
  • 8:00-10:00 p.m.: The season finale of Survivor: China (8.5/12 HH rating/share, 15.10M viewers, 5.2/12 A18-49 rating/share) performed fairly well, up solidly from its May finale numbers achieved by the Fiji edition of the reality series (+1.47M/+11% among viewers, +9% among households and +11% among adults 18-49). However, despite that growth from the last cycle, the show remained off from its year ago numbers (Survivor: Cook Islands). Compared to that edition, the results were reversed as Survivor: China was down by 1.32M/8% among viewers, 9% among households and 11% among adults 18-49. So not a dominant performance by any stretch of the imagination, but certainly a solid and welcome ratings performance for CBS, given that ratings for the networks have all been down year-to-year due to several factors.
    • Season finale comparison (May 13, 2007 – Survivor: Fiji):
      • Households – 7.8/13 to 8.5/12
      • Viewers – 13.63M to 15.10M
      • Adults 18-49 – 4.6/13 to 5.1/12
    • Year-to-year season finale comparison (December 17, 2006 – Survivor: Cook Islands):
      • Households – 9.3/14 to 8.5/12
      • Viewers – 16.42M to 15.10M
      • Adults 18-49 – 5.7/14 to 5.1/12
    • Last week’s numbers (8:25 p.m. – Amazing Race 12):
      • Households – 7.4/11
      • Viewers – 11.95M
      • Adults 18-49 – 3.9/9
  • 10:00 p.m.: The Survivor: China Reunion special (7.3/12 HH rating/share, 12.22M viewers, 4.5/12 A18-49 rating/share) completed the CBS win for the night. The results were similar to the above finale, with the show improving upon its May numbers, but down compared to its year-ago numbers. Full numbers can be seen below.
    • Season finale comparison (May 13, 2007 – Survivor: Fiji):
      • Households – 6.8/12 to 7.3/12
      • Viewers – 11.43M to 12.22M
      • Adults 18-49 – 4.1/11 to 4.5/12
    • Year-to-year season finale comparison (December 17, 2006 – Survivor: Cook Islands):
      • Households – 8.0/13 to 7.3/12
      • Viewers – 13.53M to 12.22M
      • Adults 18-49 – 5.1/13 to 4.5/12
    • Week-to-week numbers (9:25 p.m. – Cold Case):
      • Households – 7.6/11
      • Viewers – 11.57M
      • Adults 18-49 – 3.1/7
    • Week-to-week numbers (10:25 p.m. – Shark):
      • Households – 6.7/12
      • Viewers – 9.84M
      • Adults 18-49 – 2.4/7

NBC followed in second place for the evening with a 7.3/11 household rating/share, but was third among both viewers (11.14 million) and among adults 18-49 (4.0/10 rating/share).

  • Last Week:
    • 6.4/10 HH Rating/Share [#3]
    • 9.88M Viewers [#3]
    • 3.8/9 A18-49 Rating [#2]
  • 7:00 p.m.: Football Night in America (3.8/6 HH rating/share, 5.61M viewers, 1.9/5 A18-49 rating/share) kicked off a bit lower than last week’s episode. Isn’t it strange how NBC’s show performs so much more poorly than Fox’s The OT (more on that program below)? I’m honestly baffled as to why that is the case.
    • Week-to-week numbers:
      • Households – 4.1/7 to 3.8/6
      • Viewers – 6.17M to 5.61M
      • Adults 18-49 – 2.4/7 to 1.9/5
  • Keep in mind that ratings for live sporting events often change significantly when the finals are released. Expect the same to be true (with numbers likely increasing) when the finals for this telecast are released.
  • 8:00 p.m.: The remaining minutes of Football Night in America and the Pre-Game and beginning of NBC Sunday Night Football (7.2/11 HH rating/share, 11.08M viewers, 3.8/9 A18-49 rating/share)
  • 8:30 p.m.: NBC Sunday Night Football: Washington Redskins at New York Giants (8.8/14 HH rating/share, 13.37M viewers, 4.8/12 A18-49 rating/share) gave the network some much needed growth from the week prior among households and viewers, but was down slightly among adults 18-49 (expect all three categories to go up though when finals are released). NBC really needs to better schedule their Sunday night games. They have flex rights, I really have no idea why they’d pick a matchup with such limited national appeal (aside from the Colts). The Browns/Bills game would have been a much more worthy addition to the schedule. Then again, that might just be my Browns bias coming through a bit.
    • Week-to-week numbers (8:30-11:09 p.m. – NBC Sunday Night Football: Indianapolis Colts at Baltimore Ravens):
      • Households – 8.1/13 to 8.8/14
      • Viewers – 12.73M to 13.37M
      • Adults 18-49 – 4.9/12 to 4.8/12

Fox finished in third place for the evening with a 6.8/10 household rating/share, but squeaked by NBC for second among viewers with 11.20 million, and finished in a strong first among adults 18-49 with a 4.9/12 rating/share.

  • Last Week:
    • 3.8/6 HH Rating/Share [#4]
    • 6.24M Viewers [#4]
    • 2.9/7 A18-49 Rating [#4]
  • 7:00 & 7:30 p.m.: An NFL Overrun (12.9/21 HH rating/share, 21.43M viewers, 8.2/13 A18-49 rating/share) and The OT (7.4/12 HH rating/share, 12.10M viewers, 4.9/13 A18-49 rating/share) easily put Fox in the position for the time period win. Both programs were about on par with their last airings on the network two weeks ago. NBC must be baffled as to why CBS and Fox overruns perform so much better than their Sunday night matchups. That includes their pre-game show which got absolutely destroyed by Fox’s The OT (+6.49M/+54% among viewers, +49% among households and +61% among adults 18-49). Are the hosts on The OT really that big a draw, or is it simply a situation where viewers just keep the station tuned in out of habit? Regardless, the numbers are there, and that’s all that counts.
    • Episode-to-episode numbers (December 2 – NFL Overrun):
      • Households – 13.8/25 to 12.9/21
      • Viewers – 22.06M to 21.43M
      • Adults 18-49 – 7.9/15 to 8.2/13
    • Episode-to-episode numbers (fast nationals – December 2 – The OT):
      • Households – 8.3/13 to 7.4/12
      • Viewers – 13.03M to 12.10M
      • Adults 18-49 – 5.0/13 to 4.9/13
  • 8:00 & 8:30 p.m.: A new episode of The Simpsons (6.1/9 HH rating/share, 10.15M viewers, 4.8/12 A18-49 rating/share) was followed by a new King of the Hill (4.7/7 HH rating/share, 7.82M viewers, 3.7/9 A18-49 rating/share). Returning from a nearly 1 month hiatus was The Simpsons, and the network couldn’t have picked a better day to bring the show back. The program improved upon its last airing by 2.58M/34% among viewers, 39% among households and 37% among adults 18-49. Additionally, it should be positively noted that despite a loss of more than 2 million viewers from its lead-in, retention among adults 18-49 was at a very impressive, and nearly perfect, 98%. King of the Hill also took advantage of its stronger lead-in, with week-to-week gains of 1.24M/19% among viewers, 17.5% among households and 19% among adults 18-49.
    • Episode-to-episode numbers (November 25 – The Simpsons):
      • Households – 4.4/7 to 6.1/9
      • Viewers – 7.57M to 10.15M
      • Adults 18-49 – 3.5/8 to 4.8/12
    • Week-to-week numbers (King of the Hill):
      • Households – 4.0/6 to 4.7/7
      • Viewers – 6.58M to 7.82M
      • Adults 18-49 – 3.1/7 to 3.7/9
  • 9:00 & 9:30 p.m.: A repeat of Family Guy (5.2/8 HH rating/share, 8.51M viewers, 4.2/10 A18-49 rating/share) was followed by a new episode of American Dad (4.5/7 HH rating/share, 7.17M viewers, 3.5/8 A18-49 rating/share). The increased audience created by the NFL Overrun extended to the 9:30 p.m. time slot, as American Dad improved by 660,000/10% among viewers, 12.5% among households and 9% among adults 18-49 to help complete Fox’s evening victory among adults 18-49.
    • Week-to-week numbers (American Dad):
      • Households – 4.0/6 to 4.5/7
      • Viewers – 6.51M to 7.17M
      • Adults 18-49 – 3.2/7 to 3.5/8

ABC followed in fourth place for the evening with a 5.3/8 household rating/share, 8.39 million viewers and a 2.7/7 rating/share among adults 18-49.

  • Last Week:
    • 7.4/11 HH Rating/Share [#2]
    • 11.75M Viewers [#2]
    • 3.3/8 A18-49 Rating [#3]
  • 7:00 p.m.: America’s Funniest Home Videos (5.2/8 HH rating/share, 8.80M viewers, 2.7/7 A18-49 rating/share) led the hour among non-sports programming among adults 18-49, just barely finishing ahead of 60 Minutes’ 2.6 rating in the demo. Despite the increased competition in the hour due to the NFL Overrun and The OT on Fox, the show dipped only slightly among total viewership, and managed to post an equally slight gain among adults 18-49 (+4%).
    • Week-to-week numbers:
      • Households – 5.3/8 to 5.2/8
      • Viewers – 9.06M to 8.80M
      • Adults 18-49 – 2.6/7 to 2.7/7
  • 8:00 p.m.: Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (7.2/11 HH rating/share, 11.84M viewers, 4.2/10 A18-49 rating/share) finished in a competitive position for the hour, losing minimal audience from the week prior.
    • Week-to-week numbers:
      • Households – 7.7/11 to 7.2/11
      • Viewers – 12.78M to 11.84M
      • Adults 18-49 – 4.4/10 to 4.2/10
  • Repeats of Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters rounded out the rest of ABC’s lineup with usual below-average performances. Tis the norm for repeats of serialized programming.
  • 9:00 p.m.: A repeat of Desperate Housewives (5.0/8 HH rating/share, 7.50M viewers, 2.4/6 A18-49 rating/share).
  • 10:00 (10:02) p.m.: A repeat of Brothers & Sisters (3.8/6 HH rating/share, 5.41M viewers, 1.7/4 A18-49 rating/share).
    • Last week’s numbers (9:00-11:00 p.m. – Oprah Winfrey Presents: Mitch Albom’s ‘For One More Day’):
      • Households – 8.3/13
      • Viewers – 12.53M
      • Adults 18-49 – 3.2/8

The CW was left then in fifth place with a 0.8/1 household rating/share, 1.23 million viewers and a 0.5/1 rating/share among adults 18-49.

  • Last Week:
    • 0.9/1 HH Rating/Share [#5]
    • 1.26M Viewers [#5]
    • 0.5/1 A18-49 Rating [#5]
  • 7:00 & 7:30 p.m.: CW Now (0.7/1 HH rating/share, 1.06M viewers, 0.4/1 A18-49 rating/share) was followed by a repeat of Aliens in America (0.6/1 HH rating/share, 948,000 viewers, 0.3/1 A18-49 rating/share). Hey, hey, watch out for CW Now. The teen focused news mag posted week-to-week gains of 25% among viewers and 33% among adults 18-49! Yes, that’s sarcasm. Amazing what a gain of just 210,000 viewers can do to your percentages when the overall audience is so pitifully low huh?
    • Week-to-week numbers (CW Now):
      • Households – 0.7/1 to 0.7/1
      • Viewers – 0.85M to 1.06M
      • Adults 18-49 – 0.3/1 to 0.4/1
  • Repeats filled the rest of the schedule, resulting in stronger numbers than are originally posted by The CW on Sundays, as the ‘Top Model’ repeat performed better than the recent original installment of struggling drama Life is Wild. Yeah, that’s problem.
  • 8:00 p.m.: A repeat of America’s Next Top Model (1.0/2 HH rating/share, 1.45 million viewers, 0.6/2 A18-49 rating/share).
    • Last week’s numbers (Life is Wild):
      • Households – 0.8/1
      • Viewers – 1.11M
      • Adults 18-49 – 0.4/1
  • 9:00 p.m.: And that was followed by a repeat of the series premiere of Crowned: Mother of All Pageants (0.8/1 HH rating/share, 1.22 million viewers, 0.5/1 A18-49 rating/share) which didn’t get many more eyeballs.
GO TO WEEKLY RATINGS PAGE

Note: Network average numbers from the week prior are based on fast national data. Comparison’s from the week prior (or episode-to-episode, etc.) on specific shows are based on final national data. Ratings for the current day are based on fast nationals. (Expect all three scenarios to be the case at all times, unless otherwise noted). The final rating for first-run episodes that aired this evening will be reported the following week. So for example, the final rating for tonights episode of “Survivor: China” will be reported in next weeks report for Sunday, December 23, 2007.

Also keep in mind that because these are fast national ratings, numbers may increase or decrease when the final nationals are released.

Source: Fast/Final National Ratings Data from Nielsen Media Research and PIFeedback

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